Six UK cities to get Copenhagen-style cycling-based citizens’ surveys

Sustrans is to launch "Bicycle Account" citizens’ surveys in six UK cities to track take-up of cycling. Similar surveys are carried out in Copenhagen, capital of Denmark. The cities that will take part are Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Manchester and Newcastle.

The surveys will show progress on creating cities fit for cycling through giving a voice on cycling issues to the people of the respective cities.

Sustrans said citizen involvement is crucial to finding out what people living and working in a city think about getting about by bike, and to gauging progress towards making those cities more cycle-friendly.

Dene Stevens, Project Manager for Sustrans, said:

“Copenhagen and other European cities have long been held up as examples of great places to live and work, where walking and cycling is the easiest way to get around. Many cities in the UK are following suit and have ambitious plans to match the best in Europe. The adoption of a Copenhagen-style citizens’ survey for the UK will help Sustrans and the cities of Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Manchester and Newcastle achieve those ambitions and build cities that are great for people.

“Together, we aim to give everyone the choice of safe cycling in their city.”

Sustrans and the cities will work together to showcase a vision for increasing cycling and will set up monitoring and evaluation programmes to track progress, with results published in a biennial report for each of the cities. The reports will include information on cycling conditions, new initiatives, how many people are cycling and what residents think about cycling in their city. This can help cities inform planning decisions.

The project is supported by The Freshfield Foundation. The first UK Bicycle Accounts will be published in October 2015.